eShop news (July 27): Serial Cleaners / Blasphemous: The Stir of Dawn

Today’s Nintendo eShop news: latest set of details for Serial Cleaners, but also…

• Blasphemous: The Stir of Dawn
• RetroMania Wrestling
• Jackbox Party Pack 7
• Hatch Tales
• Roundguard

Serial Cleaners

Draw Distance have shared some new details for Serial Cleaners, along with some more pictures:

Serial Cleaners is a standalone experience, loosely tied to the events of the first game so that it can be fully enjoyed without having played the original title. Serial Cleaners will be a fully-fledged stealth-action crime story with complexity and challenge increased from its predecessor. The sequel is built around a strong narrative, this time drawing upon the spirit of New York City in the ‘90s and the cinema of the decade.

Rather than figuring out a predesigned puzzle, the challenge in Serial Cleaners revolves around choosing the right tools for the job, and the world provides the player with a toolkit that supports several different playstyles. The baseline mechanics were expanded with additional focus on movement and environment awareness, while also increasing the importance of blood – for example now it can be smeared all around the crime scene.

Player will take on the role of four distinct cleaners, differentiated by their abilities, perceptiveness, available environmental interactions, and personality. Each of the cleaners plays by the same general rules, but differ in a unique approach to the job. Depending on character used cabinet cab be a hiding place, movable obstacle to block your pursuers or storage for bodies.

For example Bob “The Cleaner” Leaner, the protagonist of the first game and mentor to the other cleaners is most experienced and well rounded in his abilities. His playstyle revolves around the slow and methodical approach, using his keen senses to pinpoint the places to hide from unwanted eyes. But when push comes to shove, Bob can quickly retreat by sliding over the pools of blood in quite a funky manner.

One of the new additions to cleaner roster is Lati. She’s a hopeless recluse who tries to look after her hood, too often against her better judgment. She’s smart, witty, and conflicted… or at least she was before she nearly got busted for a murder she didn’t commit. Being left by her “friends” among a pile of dead bodies didn’t sit well with her future plans, but despite the odds, she managed to keep her cool and started cleaning. That singular act of grit captured Bob’s attention, and he quickly took her under his wings.

When the job goes smoothly, Lati pops her headphones on and blasts some alternative rap. But when things got hot, her almost instinctual spatial awareness kicks in. Unlike Bob, she prefers to hightail rather than hide. She uses surroundings to her advantage by jumping, climbing, and sliding over obstacles, which makes her the most nimble among the cleaner crew.

Lati is an example of our attempts to mix and match cinematic inspirations for a narrative purpose. Her character is heavily inspired by ‘90s Black cinema: the works of Spike Lee, the filmography of the late John Singleton (such as 1991’s Boyz n the Hood) and other classics such as Fresh (1994). The first crime scene she gets to clean up is a twist on the screenplay of Juice (1992) and should feel familiar to the fans of Kevin Smith and his movie Clerks (1994).

Each crime scene in the game is a love letter to different movies of the decade, and a piece of a larger story shared among the cleaners on New Year’s Eve 1999. Together, the plot will make for a healthy mix of dark comedy and mature themes, told in a self-aware and pulpy tone.

Serial Cleaners (Switch – eShop) does not have a release date yet.

Source: Draw Distance PR

Blasphemous: The Stir of Dawn

Here’s the latest video for Blasphemous, introducing the Spanish cast of the Stir of Dawn free DLC (out on August 4th worldwide):

RetroMania Wrestling

Here’s the latest Developer’s Vlog for RetroMania Wrestling:

• 97% of the sprites are complete
• There’s another arena coming
• New test footage from the @nwa 70 arena
• GO @JPWARHORSE!!

RetroMania Wrestling (Switch – eShop) does not have a release date yet.

Jackbox Party Pack 7

Here’s the latest video for the Jackbox Party Pack 7, introducing Blather ‘Round:

Jackbox Party Pack 7 (Switch – eShop) comes out this Fall in Europe and North America.

Hatch Tales

The latest Kickstarter update for Hatch Tales is now live. Click here to check it out!

Hatch Tales (Switch – eShop) does not have a release date yet.

Roundguard

Last week, the Treasure Hunter Update was released for Roundguard. It adds two new game modes, a sneaky new enemy, and even more unlockable rewards.

Here’s a trailer and some details for this update:

The new modes are Daily Puzzle and Weekly Run – adding ongoing surprises and content to the game. In the Daily Puzzle, there’s a unique bite-sized challenge every day with a game-changing twist, like “No gravity,” “Poison is permanent,” or “Defeat the room in two turns or die!” For a tougher challenge, Weekly Run adds a new set of twisted rules and a new 45 floor dungeon every week. Players around the world will be facing the exact same dungeon for true head-to-head competition on the leaderboards to see who lives, who dies, and who escapes with the most treasure!

If you manage to claim victory over these new challenges you’ll be rewarded with new relics and further rewards. Each relic gives you the power to customize the rules of the game so you can experiment with the best combos and reach even greater heights for treasure hunting. Watch out though, because hidden through the dungeon is a new enemy: The Treasure Chest Mimic. Roundguard has always had classic RPG elements so there was no way that Wonderbelly Games would leave out this iconic trickster. Beware adventurer! This treasure hunts YOU.

Source: The Quantum Astrophysicists Guild PR